Vin Scully, after soul-searching, will be back for 66th Dodgers season

By Steve Dilbeck

Jul 29, 2014 | 8:19 PM

Best Dodgers news of the year came in the second inning Tuesday night via the stadium video boards.

Vin Scully will return next season.

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Apparently the game still gives him goose bumps – or maybe he didn't want to go out in a season when some 70% of the Los Angeles area can't hear him broadcast the TV games – because the Hall of Fame broadcaster will return for an unprecedented 66th season.

The Dodgers made the announcement in what you might call a unique way. In the middle of the second on their video boards, they flashed "breaking news" and showed team broadcaster Alanna Rizzo at the microphone.

Rizzo said they were turning to a news conference that showed Justin Turner, Yasiel Puig and Hyun-Jin Ryu at the table inside the stadium media room. First, Ryu spoke in Korean and then Puig in Spanish, and then supposedly Turner translated into English the news that Scully was coming back.

Various players were seated in the media room and then charged the table in celebration, as the Dodger Stadium crowd erupted in applause. The crowd gave Scully a standing ovation and he stood up in the broadcast booth, hand over heart, seemingly moved by the reaction.

The Dodgers filmed the announcement prior to Tuesday's batting practice so a lot of people knew about it and kept it quiet.

Scully, 86, makes annual announcements over whether he will return. His 65 consecutive years of broadcasting the Dodgers is already the longest for anyone with one team.

"Naturally there will come a time, when I will have to say goodbye, but I've soul-searched and this is not the time," Scully said in a statement.